Jade Eyes
by Jessella Gunnar
Summary: Reborn to escape and survive, taken to a Garden to grow to be a warrior.. Fight off your demons.. Set a year & a half after the events of FF8. Squall&OC.
1. I'll come around when you're down

_The OC introduced in this writing is my baby. However, I own nothing from Final Fantasy. Unfortunately._

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She felt dead inside. Hollow. The heat of the sun seeped into her pores but she could feel nothing. Arising from the salty water, stumbling to shore. Naked, wet, exhausted, she collapsed in the sand..

........

Morning. Her bare back turned to him. Pushed himself up on his elbows… Shit. The recollection of the night before came back to Squall, without his permission.

Using the key he had given her as an anniversary gift, Rinoa came to his apartment at 2 am, uninvited and drunk. Squall was awoken to her straddling him and kissing his face in careless aggression,

"Fuck me" she groaned between heavy breaths and kisses. Her hands pulling at his neck. Still half-asleep, completely caught off guard, Squall didn't know what to do with the girl writhing upon him. She had never been this vigorous, this commanding. He could smell and taste the alcohol. In mumbles, he tried questioning but was interrupted by one hand covering his mouth and the other grasping his shaft. It was nowhere near arousing.

Furious with her crude actions Squall ripped her hands off of him, his jaw tight,

"Stop it, Rinoa."

"Squall, just fuck me. Stop making this so fucking difficult and just fuck me." A demand with exasperation. Sitting up his grip firm on her upper arms,

"How much did you drink?"

"What the hell's wrong with you?!" Thrashed her arms loose. "Calling me a drunk now? Oh, no wait! You don't wanna fuck me? Is that it? I don't do it for you anymore, is that it?" He searched her face for a cruel sarcastic joke, needing to know she wasn't serious. No answer. Squall pushed her off of him; he was pulsing with anger.

"I can't believe you…" he said under his breath, his back turned to her.

"Whatever…" He heard her get undressed and slip under the sheets.

He prayed she wouldn't remember the event this morning. Despite his cold persona, he couldn't stand being mad at her for long. Squall moved himself closer, fighting the distance between their bodies. Draped his arm over her waist, pressing his chest to her cold back, the light from the window told him it was about 6. His lips left light kisses from her shoulder to the back of her neck. His efforts went unacknowledged by the sleeping beauty though. Her hair smelled of perfume and sweat. Rinoa crept into his bed a stranger last night, brutal and unloving.

........

Xu answered the alert system, "Alert confirmed by Xu. What's the issue?" Through the static she could hear a masculine voice rushed in panic,

"This is Squall. Xu, I need your help fast. I'm down on the beach."

"Got it. I'll be there in 5."

........

"Is she gonna be okay?" his voice was low with unease. The Infirmary, as well as Balamb Garden, seemed practically deserted aside from Dr. Kadowaki, her assistant, Xu and himself. Students usually did not mingle about the grounds at 7 in the morning. Obvious concern in his body language as he sat next to her, Xu tried to lend him some assurance, smiling a little,

"I'm sure she will, Squall." His forearms planted on his knees, he felt so… heavy. The kind of heaviness a person has when they've let someone down or failed some sort of test in life. Ran his fingers through his hair and exhaled. They watched as the doctor and her nurse moved about the patient's room. "…Do you know her?"

A pause. "No… She was unconscious by the time I got to her.."

"So she doesn't know that you saw her…" Her voice trailed off before she could mention the girl's nude condition to her commander. His bangs fell over his eyes, hiding whatever real emotion was taking place. Squall preferred it that way.

"Yeah…" Finally he raised his vision to find her patiently awaiting it. He appreciated her attentiveness. "…When she wakes up… she doesn't need to know… about me…"

"You mean that it was you who found-?"

"Yeah…" Kadowaki emerged from the room then, appearing a bit too cheerful for Squall's taste. He and Xu stood from their seat to hear the results. Glancing at her clipboard every now and then,

"Well… everything's good. No injuries, no internal problems. We have her sedated for now just so she can get some rest… Seems she was suffering from severe exhaustion and starvation." Squall viewed the girl through the glass window, different tubes entering her nostrils and the crease of her right elbow, a blue blanket covering almost all of her reaching an inch below her defined collarbone. He envied the serenity upon her face.

"So… how long will it take for her to recover?" asked Xu. The doctor held the clipboard to her white-coated chest, not looking so sure now.

"It's hard to say exactly. It could be a day or two… it could take a week." Her persona switched almost immediately to grinning. "But we're making sure all her nutrients levels are being restored." Xu nodded in a professional manner,

"Okay, contact me when she awakens, please."

"Will do, my dear," she replied with that smile.

"Thank you, Doctor. I believe we're done here now." The SeeD Commander and his comrade began their way out of the Infirmary.

Between last night's ordeal and what he had just discovered that morning on the shore, he couldn't determine which was making him more withdrawn. He could barely carry a normal conversation, not that he ever had a talent for that in the first place. Thankfully though Xu respected his silence and didn't push to talk. Before they parted ways in the lobby, she broke the ice,

"Do you want me to contact you once I speak to her?"

The face flashed in his mind. Thought of what it would be like to know her.

"…No… just…" the words seemed conflicted coming out of his mouth, "…Just make sure she's alright."

"Yes, sir," she smiled a little.


	2. Capture the Flag

_Second part of Chapter 1. Again, I own nothing of Final Fantasy._

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A hand in his pocket, the other holding his coffee mug, Squall inhaled the steam from the drink along with the ocean air. The balcony outside his bedroom overlooked the desolate shoreline; Balamb Garden could be discerned far off in the distance. Rinoa was still in repose; her raven hair sprawled across the pillow.

What a mess last night turned out to be. He was fine with her sneaking in. He was well into her fervor as well. But the wasted behavior made the whole ordeal so indecent and lewd to him. Sex was never light and frivolous for the young man, the exact same way friendships and relationships never were. The lush didn't even say "I love you", the first time he felt contempt for her.

He sipped the hot black liquid. Looked back through the sliding glass door, the hung-over angel asleep in his bed. Returned his gaze to the sunrise, watched the calm rhythmic waves.

Something stood out though. Something that was not in the pattern. Literally standing out of the water, Squall focused in on the figure.

Human. A human climbing from out of the surf to dry land. He observed, curious, his imagination coming up with this person's possible life story in which they take daily morning swims.

In a sudden twist to his vision the being collapsed to the shore.

The mug fell to the cement flooring of the balcony, shattering the ceramic, the dark coffee splashing and spilling everywhere.

........

He ran and he ran. Squall's heart punched like a boxer's fist inside his heaving chest. The shore. He could see the subject being washed in the tiny waves. Rushed. Approach.

There it was. His heart pounding still, if not more now. He stood there for a moment, confounded; gazing down at a stark-naked girl, wet long auburn hair draped every which way. Snapping himself back to urgency, Squall knelt down and gently pulled the body up from the muddy sand.

"Hey?! Are you alright?" he shook her by the shoulders lightly. Nothing. She was limp in his arms, her body arching and curving, yielding to his body. He put his bare fingers to her throat, searching for a pulse. Steady and calm beating arteries. Wiped some sand from her face, her skin soft and smooth. Her lids settled upon her eyes in complete peace.

The water was soaking his pants but he couldn't care. He was in awe, asking himself how could someone unconscious be so… entrancing? His thumb touched her lip. It was a struggle not to look past her shoulders. Squall grabbed his cell.


	3. Traveling, swallowing, dramamine

_I own nothing of Final Fantasy, but the OC is all mine._

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Her bones ached profoundly with each step she took. With each step closer to the shore, the waves lessening, the early morning air stinging her wet skin. Despite the deadening pain numbing all her nerves, the young girl couldn't help but feel the relief and happiness of freedom wash over. She could finally rest. Her whole body just gave out, succumbing, weakened by the epic swim and everything went dark. The girl crashed to the muddy sand, the tiny waves washing her in serenity…

........

There was something. Something licking her cheek, warm and soft in the dim of her sleep. There was something audible behind it too. Purring? Her jade eyes fluttered open halfway. A creature's face hung over hers. She felt its moist nose nudge her gently. Focusing her vision, it… it was a lion. A regal lion with sea blue eyes staring at her, the sunlight shimmered in its grand mane. It lied down next to her in the wet sand, warming her naked skin, comforting her. She fell back asleep; the lion's purr her lullaby.

.........

Beep…

Beep…

Beep…

Eyes opened once more, this time to a blur.

A small square room. The lion was gone.

She couldn't move, her body still in a trance of some sort. The girl arched herself up on the bed, feeling the electricity of pain shoot up her arms. Facial muscles tightened. Planted her hands behind her. Her long hair falling in swirls and ripples upon the bed. But once she felt the blanket across her bare chest slip down, a quick hand grabbed it before the fabric could descend too far. She noticed tubes running in and out of her arm.

Fear was beginning to set in. There was a window to the outside behind her, a window to another room to her right and a full-length glass door in front of her. It was as if she were in a glass box. In response to her inner distress, the heart monitor was sounding beeps rapidly.

Sitting there, wrapped in a soft blanket, the young girl couldn't decide whether to feel frightened or happy. Tears were appearing in those green eyes. She had no idea where she was but she knew that it was far away from that hell.

Suddenly, the glass door slid open. An older woman wearing a long white coat walked in, smiling sweetly at the girl.

"Did you rest well?" her voice was gentle too. The patient attempted to speak but not a sound came out, her throat weak and dry. The woman gave her a sympathizing look, "Poor thing, I'll go get you something to fix that." With that she left the room.

The girl watched through the door; she was speaking with someone on the office phone,

"Xu? Yes….. Yes, she just recovered a few minutes ago…… Great. Okay, goodbye." She heard the phone click on the receiver.

Her hand felt her small throat, touched the side of her face, covering her dizzy eyes. Beneath her heavy bangs, it felt her forehead, then finally ran through her long auburn hair. Almost every possible human emotion that ever existed spinning inside, she fell back upon the bed.

Moments later, a much younger woman approached the tiny room wearing a strict-looking ensemble, her chocolate brown hair neatly tucked behind her ears. She had a clipboard in her arm. But she smiled a little. The girl sat back up again, keeping the blanket tight to her body. Sensing her confusion and distress, the uniformed woman seemed to turn warm as she handed the girl a mug of hot tea,

"Wow… I finally get to meet you now… Oh careful, it's hot." She sat down on a stool on the right side of the bed. In a raspy whisper,

"…Where… where am I?"

"Balamb Garden." The girl's expression was complete bewilderment. "This is the Infirmary, of course… I had found you on the beach about four days ago and brought you here. Thankfully Dr. Kadowaki took great care of care of you." The Infirmary, the older woman, Dr. Kadowaki. But what was…

"… Balamb Garden?" the woman was not expecting that question.

"… well, Balamb Garden is a training academy and school for SeeD."

"What's SeeD?" She began to look just as lost as the girl. Trying to regain professional composure,

"…SeeD…um… SeeD is the name given to the top mercenaries trained in Garden." Shifted in her seat and hesitated, "Are you… are you from around here?" The girl slowly shook her head, putting her lips to the rim of the mug. "…Where are you from?"

Contact seemed to break. Those jade eyes averted down as she sipped the tea. No response. She couldn't answer. Not that. The woman's voice went low, "…Forgive me, miss, I….." The room quiet. Then the subtle grin returned, "I didn't introduce myself. I'm Xu, a SeeD of Balamb Garden." Xu, cute professional SeeD Xu with the chocolate brown hair. "…And you are?"

There was a long pause. A chance, a chance to start over, to be reborn. The girl had found her chance. Her eyes appeared hypnotized as her voice spoke a clear word,

"…Alona." Her vision came back to Xu. "Alona Bennette."


	4. I can see again

_I own nothing of Final Fantasy, but dear God, I wish I did. OC all mine._

_Listen to _So Here We Are_ by_ _Bloc Party while reading this._

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…_this can't be possible… this couldn't… exist._

Alona couldn't believe the joyous feeling that was strangling her lungs with such relentless sobs. She had been crying for what felt like hours ever since Xu left her to her dorm. Her dorm. With her brand new uniform laying neatly on her bed.

The happiness was so overwhelming, so powerful all she could do was cry. She wasn't quite sure if it was due to exhaustion or the fact that she hadn't eaten so much as a bite in days that was making her so emotional. But this delirium was unlike anything she had ever felt before.

Holding her knees, Alona sat with her back to her door as she studied, admired every inch of her new home in the dark. It was more like her first home. Her lips trembled as they formed some expression like a smile.

There was a bed, the perfect size she thought, pushed into the farthest corner of the room from where she was. A big rectangular window was just above the pillows. Light glowed faintly through the blinds. With shaky legs, she braced herself with the door to stand. Walked to the only light that filled the room. She peered through the flexible plastic. Her wet eyes widened with awe. Yanked the cord and the blinds flew up; the entire room seemed to gleam.

The girl stood there, dazed by the giant, luminous moon. It's pearl light turned the black sky a velvety dark blue. The sheer beauty of it softened her. As if it were music, some sweet lullaby that could comfort her to sleep.

Home.

The word filled Alona's thoughts and she fell back with ease onto her bed. Closed her eyes. Inner peace smoothed her features. She inhaled deeply and exhaled, the fact had finally hit.

"..I'm free…," the whisper was barely more than a breath as she lay there bathing in her calm bliss.

She began to recall the events of the day, remembering the most recent and tracing backwards. The ordinary tour of the Garden Xu so kindly gave her; it wasn't so ordinary to Alona though. Every new area sent her in circles, trying to see all the angles, all the people. It was all so foreign to her. And she wanted to absorb _everything_.

Before the tour was the paperwork that just couldn't be completed. She was practically an alien to this world. Alona remembered the fear that saturated her voice when she spoke to the headmaster. She cringed at the thought.

The headmaster had a concerned expression upon his kind face when he asked of… the swim.

"…_Did you… really swim for… three days?"_ All she could manage was a sincere nod. Because of the aquatic evasion that was done with such incredulous determination, denying her the opportunity to become a great mercenary would be unforgivably ridiculous of the headman. Her heart sang when Headmaster Cid accepted her to be a Balamb Garden cadet. Tomorrow would officially be her first day.

Then there were Xu's wonderful acts of generosity towards the poor thing. First was her patience with informing Alona on the basics of the Garden. She could tell the SeeD was having a difficult time trying to hide the shock of how little she knew of the system. All the while Alona was trying to conceal the true measure of her lack of knowledge of the entire world. She was so relieved there was a substantial library near.

Second were the clothes. As Xu sat there in the infirmary with Alona, it was discussed that the girl had no money, no possessions, no clothing. Nothing. With the sweetest smile the woman asked her if she liked jeans.

"_Jeans? Umm, sure." _Before she knew it, Xu was handing her an armful of fabrics to throw on. Two pairs of blue jeans, two white tank tops, a simple grey hooded jacket, a pair of sneakers with clean socks, and some brand new cotton panties. _"This…is too much."_

"_You can pay me back later if it makes you happy,"_ was all Xu said, waving her hand like she had only picked up the tab for a mere drink. Alona adored the new garments.

On that thought, she opened her eyes, propped up on her elbows. The blue and silver uniform lay beside her. Her new life lay before her.

Fingering the navy fabric, she wondered how she would look the following day, walking to her classes, sitting at the desks. Hopefully she wouldn't be terribly obvious. Obvious?

Hair!

Her hair was far too long. Surely she would be stared at no matter if she had it up or down. Undoing the massive bun at the base of her skull, henna auburn hair lapsed over her shoulders and down her back to the bed. She stood and the length of the strands reached her knees. Far too long.

Her hands quickly rummaged through some drawers for anything sharp.

Finally, a knife. It was small and nowhere near razor sharp but it would have to do. Her fingers moved fast and fluidly, making a long loose braid. What time was it?

9:42 read the glowing digital clock on the shelf by her bed. Grabbed her key. Shut the door behind her.

The girls' restroom was empty at that moment thankfully. The bright lighting of the facility stunned her sore eyes. Stood before one of the mirrors. Alona was shocked to see how swollen and pink her eyelids actually were. A soft chuckle to herself. Turned the faucet on. Warm water, warmer than warm. Just the idea of cold liquid chilled her insides to the core. Splashed her skin with the warmth; the sensation was phenomenal. As droplets rolled down, she looked into the mirror again. Looked at her wet face.

It was a little disheartening. The color appeared to be nonexistent, giving a sickly effect to her skin. And dark violet circled her red eyes. But the disturbing thing was how dehydrated and just… _starved_ she actually looked. It was blatantly apparent that she hadn't eaten in quite some time. How long has it been? A week? Her cheekbones were sharp and her jaw harsh. The suppleness of her cheeks was barely visible. Unzipped the hoody. Her collarbones were practically handlebars.

That's it. First thing tomorrow, before class, she was going to have the most epic breakfast of her entire life. But for the moment, her hair.

Grabbed the lengthy braid and indecision fell upon her expression. Then her tired eyes turned fierce as she forcefully pulled the dagger through the thick strands. The braid came undone. The ends of the smooth dark tresses touched just above the small of her back. Alona stared at the other half of the braid limp in her hands. Cautiously her vision moved back to the mirror, not sure of what she would see. But the worry dissolved. A weight had been lifted emotionally and physically speaking. The new image of herself caused an unfamiliar excitement to build within her. She wanted to do more.

Immediately her thin fingers brushed some of the hair in front of her face. Razored practically a foot and a half off of the strands. Alona tousled the shorn pieces that hung over her gaze; her handcrafted bangs softened the severity of her afflicted face while hiding much of it at the same time. She smiled with pure happiness as she bit her lip.

Tomorrow was going to be incredible.


	5. No one in your bed

_Sorry for taking so long.._

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It was so cold tonight, but he couldn't care. He needed this. The still air alone had to be below freezing, but that couldn't stop him. He needed to run.

The harsh wind his speed created stung his skin wherever it was exposed. It seeped through his thermal as he pushed through the darkness.

His surroundings glowed velvety sonorous shades in the moonlight. Balamb Garden illuminated the entire environment just as well with its cerulean auroras of light that blazed from it. But Squall was oblivious to the brilliance. His thoughts were caught in an unstoppable frenzy.

Rinoa hadn't smiled at him in the slightest since before her last late night visit. It had been days now. Squall couldn't understand it, and her icy demeanor was beginning to gnaw a deep wound into him.

He couldn't stop thinking about that day. The day after the event, the day he found… _her_.

When he arrived back to his apartment Rinoa was still there. He heard no greeting when he got through the door. She was still upset about his rejection the night before, more like earlier that morning actually. Despite his exhaustion, he wanted to make it up to her immediately. Especially considering the fact that she was sober.

"Hey baby," he made sure his voice sounded sweet as possible, for his standards.

"Hey," hers was as cold and flat as a plate of steel, coming from the bedroom. The guilt was instantaneous. Shoulders slumping, he walked through the opened door to find her in front of the mirror. She was already dressed and pulling her hair into a loose updo.

"How you feeling?" he asked as he kissed her cheek. She stayed focused on her reflection.

"Fine." A joyless reply. Wrapped his arms around her waist, a plea for attention.

"So… when did you get up?"

She shrugged. Never before had Rinoa personified apathy with such defiance as she did now. Of course, she had her over-dramatic tendencies but… this was different.

"Well… anyways, I was wondering, if you were hungry, would you like some breakfast?" But the small smile on his face went unnoticed.

"Can't." There was a dull stab within Squall's chest and the smile vanished as he winced. Pale pink gloss slid across her lips in its application, "Lorenn and I are leaving for Timber in a few minutes."

_She's trying to avoid me_… The stab sharpened at this thought, this blatant realization.

"Oh… cool," was all he could respond with. Moved to his side of the bed to unlace his boots, desperate to act normal. From the corner of his eye, Squall watched her fidget through her bag as if no one else were in the apartment.

Would things have been better if he had just fucked her like she had wanted, treat his girlfriend like she were a one-night stand?

Rinoa grabbed the bag, turned and bent. Her lips touched his cheek for the briefest moment. By the time his gaze lifted in search of hers, she was out the door.

"Aahh…!" his lungs pulled him back to the present with a biting sensation. He slowed and stopped, doubling over with an arm clutching his torso. Panting so brutally, Squall became conscious of how hard he had been running. His mind was stuck in the replay of that day; it was maddening.

His heart was thudding with a violence through his body.

It was too quiet, too tranquil out here.

…There was a moment from that morning, one that refused to leave his memory. It happened after Rinoa left. Left him alone, desolate in his own place. Heavy with guilt and longing to apologize, his face fell into his palms. It happened then.

His hands, his skin had a scent embedded within them. Squall stared at his hands.

They smelled of sea salt.

And the vision of that face saturated every corner of his thinking. That beautiful angelic face so deep in slumber.

It had been quiet for too long.

Everything good was happening somewhere else.

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_Jesus Christ by Brand New_


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